The Happening Review– Whad the heck is ‘happening’ to Shyamalan?

Ok folks, the party is over for all M. Night Shyamalyan’s (MNS) fans. This film is so bad that i don’t even feel like devoting time to write its review, but i must to save all of you. Please read this review and don’t waste your hard earned money and resources on this film.

Its a fine day and all of sudden people pause and begin to kill each other. This begins in Central Park, New York and slowly starts spreading all over the Northeast. In Big cities and small towns, small groups, and large groups of people are killing themselves. There is panic everywhere. This is established in the first 5-10 minutes and it continues till the end of the film. Yes, there is absolutely no story, nothing interesting to watch, and there is no by-now-famous Shyamalan twist-at-the-end. The reason for this self-killings is revealed during the movie and again at the end. Don’t kill yourself now to know what the reason is…i will tell you. Apparently, human activity is threatening nature and the trees have to adapt to this new environment that threatens them. Sadly for the humans, as part of their adaptation the trees are emitting a poisonous/toxic gas that damages our nervous system or something that makes people who breathe this kill themselves. There a couple of scary moments, but that is mainly because of loud music.

The film just drags on and on. Typically, in an MNS film the performances are great, but here they are terrible. Shyamalan even borrows from Signs (towards the when the main lead are scared they will die and start talking about their first date; in Signs Mel Gibson talks to his kids about when they were born). MNS, in an interview, said that he has been working on this for two years. LOL.

Mr. M. Night Shyamalan, don’t you think the last two flop films The Village, and Lady in the Water were ‘signs’ that you must be out of ideas? and doesn’t your ‘sixth sense’ tell you that you have hit rock bottom in your career and you can no more be this generation’s Hitchcock? The Happening was financed 50% by an Indian company (UTV), a clear sign that he has probably lost most credibility in Hollywood. With this film receiving really bad reviews all over, it is time and expected that he will come to Bollywood where he will be respected even for the mediocre films he makes.

Parents must know that this film is not suitable for kids. It contains graphic scenes of torture and self-inflicted pain.

Mr.Inkenti Intro

Mr.Inkenti is an academician, social researcher, observer, blogger, and a fan, who studies entertainment media and related affects off/on human behavior and society. The views expressed on this blog are entirely Mr.Inkenti's and do not in any way possible represent anybody or anything. Mr.Inkenti blogs about the public affairs from RTC X Roads, Hyderabad to Oslo, Norway. Welcome, aboard.